A bad axle will not show looseness, that has to be either a wheel
bearing (brake disk will move in and out with the hub, strut mount
will NOT move) or a bad ball joint.
I'd vote for a wheel bearing. If they are the standard front wheel
drive type, they are double race ball bearing permanently sealed
bearing pressed into the steering knuckle with the shaft keyed into
them and bolted in place. They can growl, but often knock like a bad
ball joint on bumps. I've had both failures over the years. Some are
bolted on instead of pressed in (much easier to replace).
If the ball joints are bad, you can get the steering knuckle moving
back and forth with the weight off the tire, but only if it's really
bad.
Do the normal checks -- straight in and out play at the bearing is the
bearing, in and out play on an unloaded (jackstand under the control
arm) is probably ball joint or maybe loose strut mount bolts. Play
when rocking top to bottom is ball joint or strut mount (upper), side
to side is a tie rod or drag link, vertical play when prying up on the
bottom of the tire is a bad ball joint.
A bad CV joint can groan, but the diagnostic is a low speed very sharp
turn. A distinct "click click click" at wheel speed is a worn out
joint. They normally don't fail unless the boots are bad, but it does
happen at high milage. They can also moan and rumble when they get
really worn, too.
Peter
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